say. "D ndeveloped civilizatIons can leapfrog from the donkey trail to the A ." ereon CIty. The Wall Street Journal sent Rob- ert E Dallos, staff reporter, to Tren- ton, and the result was a front-page story on September 20, 1965: FIRM OF EX-NA \ry MEN BUILDS CARGO-HAULERS OF FlJTURE: DIRIGIBLES SHIP WILL CARRY 100-To1\. LOADS, THEY CLAIM; SKEPTICS SAY PLAN'S FUTURE COULD BE DIM It's a bIrd It's a plane. It's a super- dirigible! A gruup of Navy veterans plans to make huge, three-sectioned dirigibles for use as cargo carriers, bringing what they call "some startling changes" in the air-freight industry. The craft, each of which will be able to carry up to 100 tons and travel 150 miles an hour, will be able to haul containerized freight, huge missile components. prefabricated bridges, communications towers, build- ings and oil rigs, the developers claim. The initial launch of the experimental model is scheduled in six weeks, and, if all goes well, full-scale production will begIn shortly thereafter with commercial use beginning in 1967, say the owners of Aereon Corp., the company they formed to build the dirigibles. IN LOVE "'TITH A LOST CAUSE? Success, however, is not assured, and skeptics abound "I admire these men," says an official of the ]X ational Aeronau- tics and Space AdministratIon, at H unts- ville, Alabama. But he adds: "Once a man is involved \\-'"ith L.T.A. (lighter- than-air) transportation, he stays with it. But he may be in love with a lost cause." Nevertheless, "if Aereon demonstrates it proven capability KASA would really be in- terested It has potential" the official says. Edward MacCutcheon, head of the of- fice of research and development of the Maritime Administration, says Aereon "is developing some fascinating concepts. This could be a versatile aircraft" He says the "predicted performance capa- bilities and the economies promised by Aereon's venture are of interest to us as an adjunct to merchant shippIng." Aereon sees its dirigibles loading and unloading merchant vessels at sea, saving time and cutting port fees and manpower costs. Aereon also maintains its dirigibles will be able to haul freIght across the country faster than trucks and at competitive rates. And it says its craft will be able to handle heavier loads for less money than existing jet freighters ,,,hile landing at airports inaccessible to jets FEARS FRO\.1 THE PAST I f dirigibles are such '" onder trans- ports, \-vhy hasn't someone thought of us- ing then1 before ? Well, for one thing, the mention of dirigibles still instills fright in many people who remember a series of tragedies in the 1930s. notably the ex- plosion of the airship Hindenburg May 6, 1937. The accident killed 36 person and all but ended commercial use of . . . All kinds of people were suddenly interested in Aereon. A Canadian holding corporation wanted a vehicle that could land many tons on the tundra. The Kennecott Copper Cor- poratIon had found COpper at drill sites beyond the Arctic Circle Could Aere- on bring out the ore r A garbage con- tractor who regularly dumped barge- fuls of garbage in the sea off N ev; Jersey wanted to ease his work with '1 flying garbage scow. .l\. man travelled to Trenton from western Ireland to ask Aereon to come carry hIS mutton to market. Drew told the Irishman that Ius request was somewhat premdture. The prototype had not yet flown. The Irishman was broke Aereon contrib- uted to his return fare, on Aer Lingus. The company was not only hover- ing shy of its objective. There had long since developed within the corporate structure schismatic vibrations over what in fact the objective was intended to be. Drew had not named hIS com- Æ ) f' " , , r '\ \ . "'", \. " 4-9 pany Aereon for nothing. He wanted his dirships to fly, at least partly, on what he referred to as "G-power"- gravitationa] power, nature gas, the method of locomotion used by Solomon Andrews for the original Aèreons a centur) earlier. Drew happened to be the editor of the magazIne Military Chaplain, and, as such, went to Wash- ington twice a month. There he had made his own patent search, and had found what he was looking for: "S. L\.n- drews, Aerostat, Patented J ul} 5, 1864, No. 43,449. To aU whom it may concern, be it known that I, Solomon Andrews, of Perth Ambov, in the County of Middlesex, In the State of New Jersey, have invented a mode by which the air may be navigated, and a new and useful machine by which it may be done, whIch machine I cal] an 'Aereon;' and I do hereby declare that '", '>. --t "' 1 " -.., . r 'f! ...... t . ...... ) ," .. ..... àï- . V -'r' . v "Well, at last !"